Cords, such as rope, cable, wire, chain and electrical cord, are commonly offered for sale by retailers in the form of bulk material from which a consumer can select and purchase a desired quantity. Typically, retailers offer for sale a wide variety of continuous length cord on individual spools. The consumer purchases cord by selecting the type and length of a particular cord which is then manually unwound and severed from the spool. The length of cord is then presented to a sales clerk at the checkout counter for purchase by the consumer.
A problem associated with this method of sale is that the length of cord presented for purchase carries no pricing information or product description from which the sales clerk can determine the correct price, and which could also be used to take an inventory accounting of the sale for the particular cord. Thus, a customer may be charged the wrong price for the particular length of cord selected. In addition, without an accurate inventory accounting the retailer may not recognize that a spool of cord is almost empty and requires replacing. Likewise, a customer desiring to purchase a particular length of cord may not find out until after the cord has been unwound that there is not enough cord for his or her needs.
Some methods currently exist for identifying a length of cord dispensed from a spool to determine its price and take an inventory accounting. One method requires the consumer or sales clerk to record a displayed product code for the particular cord being purchased on a separate slip of paper that is presented to the sales clerk at the time of sale. The clerk enters the product code and quantity of the cord into the sales register so that the correct price for the cord is determined using product information stored in the retailer's database. Another method uses separate cards preprinted with bar code indicia for identifying the cord on each spool. The consumer takes a bar code card corresponding to the particular cord being purchased, and presents the card to a sales clerk at the time of purchase. The sales clerk then scans the bar code to identify the particular cord and manually inputs the length of cord into the sales register to determine the correct price from its product database.
Although these methods attempt to address the problem of identifying a length of cord selected from a spool, they nevertheless have limitations. These methods rely upon an honor system that requires a customer to accurately record the product code or select the correct bar code card corresponding to the particular cord being purchased. It is very easy for the customer to become confused in identifying the proper product code or bar code card to present to the sales clerk. The sales clerk may also incorrectly input the product code into the sales register. Further, a customer can intentionally present the product code or bar code card of a cheaper cord to the sales clerk so that the price actually paid is lower than that which should have been paid for the cord. Additionally, such systems do not lend themselves to inventory control.
There is therefore needed an apparatus and method for measuring and labeling a length of cord with an identifying label bearing indicia for pricing and/or inventory control.